Genesee County Library reopened after being treated for bedbugs

A Genesee County library reopened Wednesday after being treated for bedbugs.

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The Mt. Morris library found evidence of bedbugs in two books that were returned by a patron Tuesday. The building was treated that night, and the books with bugs were removed.

Shannon White is with the Library of Michigan. She said bedbugs in libraries aren’t that common.

“Libraries find out about an infestation from noticeable bed bug on a book that's been returned, and that could be in a book drop or passed over to the circulation counter, or also because the library’s a public space, you have people visiting, frequenting the libraries so bed bugs could be on the actual person.”

White said libraries are quick to catch bugs and alert patrons, so you shouldn’t be worried about an infestation in your local library.

“If a public library has an infestation they like to make the users in their community aware of what is going on, because they feel the more information the community understands and that they're taking care of the problem, that the community will feel more comfortable about it.”

White said each library has different protocol for dealing with an infestation. She said the state does not keep track of infestations, but she can recall three in recent years.